Lugar Lane was allegedly terrorized by this man Michael Stewart in the wee hours of the morning.

Botetourt Man Facing Multiple Charges Following Rampage and Two-Mile Foot Pursuit in Freezing Early Hours.

Botetourt County Sheriff Ronnie Sprinkle has announced that a 25-year-old Lugar Lane resident has been arrested and is in custody facing multiple charges following a rampage in the freezing early hours this morning that ultimately involved three residences, three stolen and wrecked vehicles, five Botetourt deputies including a K-9 unit, two Virginia State Police troopers, and a two-mile, tracking pursuit on foot.

Sheriff Sprinkle identified the man as Michael C. Stewart, who has been charged initially with robbery, three counts of breaking and entering, grand larceny, and resisting arrest. Additional charges are pending, the sheriff said.

“When the subject was located, he refused to comply with any commands and challenged the officers to ‘release the dog.’ After he was subdued, he was transported immediately to Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital for treatment of multiple dog bites and then returned to the Botetourt County-Craig County Jail in Fincastle where he is being held without bond,” Sprinkle said.

The first incident in the ongoing chain of events occurred at 1:45 a.m. when a vehicle was reported to have rolled at the intersection of Brugh’s Mill Road and Lugar Lane. That investigation established that the car had been stolen from a garage at a nearby residence.

Occupants of a residence in the 100 block of Lugar Lane then reported that a van had been stolen after a lone male rang their door-bell, then forced his way into the home and demanded the keys to the vehicle. While one of the residents fired 13 shots at it, the van was driven across a field until it hit and sheared a utility pole. The driver fled on foot.

A similar scenario occurred a short time later at a residence in the 300 block of Lugar Lane, involving a pickup truck that was backed into a field where it became stuck. The driver fled on foot.

Botetourt County officers tracked the driver’s footprints in the snow until the trail led across a south-slope where the snow had melted. A Botetourt K-9 unit then tracked the man to the edge of Interstate 81, near Mile Post 157, where he was found huddled at the base of a bluff and taken into custody at 3:14 a.m.

-END– Botetourt County Sheriff’s Office